Hugh Cuénod

Cuénod was mainly known for his performances in opera, operetta, both traditional and musical theatre, and on the concert stage.

A student of Nadia Boulanger in Paris in the 1930s, Cuénod participated in the pioneering recordings she made of the Monteverdi madrigals, and also made outstanding recordings of lute songs, of Couperin and of the Evangelist in Bach’s "St Matthew Passion".

He began his career as a concert recitalist. In 1928 he made his opera debut in Ernst Krenek’s Weimar era work, "Jonny Spielt Auf", at the Théatre des Champs Elysées in Paris, a year after its first performance in Leipzig. The following year he was plucked from obscurity by Noël Coward and given a chance to perform in the first production of Bitter Sweet, which opened at His Majesty’s Theatre in London before moving to Broadway.

Cuénod’s last public appearance was at a gala to mark his 100th birthday in 2002, at which he was presented with the World of Song Award by the Lotte Lehmann Foundation.